Y2K round two?

Q: I keep hearing that all of our computers are going to break because of some new daylight savings time change. Is this Y2K all over again? Is there anything I can do so my computer won’t break?

A: Although the recent buzz about the upcoming daylight savings time change may sound like Y2K all over again, it really doesn’t compare. Y2K was about computer dates being off by 100 years. The new daylight savings time issue is about computer times being off by an hour.

The reason for the concern regarding daylight savings time is that 2007 is the year that the new daylight savings time changes go into effect. What this means is that daylight savings time will start three weeks earlier this year and end one week later.

The worst case scenario for most people is that your computer clock will be off by an hour for three weeks this spring and one week this fall if you do nothing to address the problem. Other problems may include errant appointment reminders and meeting start times since certain software packages like Microsoft Outlook rely on the computer’s internal clock.

One simply remedy you can use is to manually change your computer’s clock when the new daylight savings time goes into effect.

If you would like a more permanent change, Microsoft has released a handful of knowledge base articles that detail what steps you can take along with links to download hot fixes that you can install on your computer to fix the problem.

Rather than repeat what the knowledge base articles already address, here are links to them most relevant articles:

Preparing for Daylight Savings Time changes in 2007

KB 931836: February 2007 cumulative time zone update for Microsoft Windows operating systems

This post was originally broadcast Friday, February 23, 2007 on “Tech Talk with Noobie”, a weekly radio show on WCBK 102.3 FM in Martinsville, Indiana. Tech Talk with Noobie airs every Friday at 11:30 a.m. If you have a question you would like Noobie to answer on the air, simply e-mail your question to .